


two rabbits run side by side

by mysticaltorque



Category: Mulan (1998)
Genre: 'hua' instead of 'fa' used because its more of a pun, Arranged Marriage, F/M, Gen, Hopeful Ending, Non-Historically Accurate Ancient Chinese Setting, Soulmates AU, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:53:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25534663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mysticaltorque/pseuds/mysticaltorque
Summary: the one in a hundred thousand that is marked is a sign of great fortune. when two unmarried youngsters of similar age both gain identical marks, how can it not be a symbol of the good fortune to come?(or, in a different universe the hua family ancestors do manage to make mulan save all of china by getting married)
Relationships: Fa Mulan/Li Shang (Disney)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 159
Collections: Just Married Exchange 2020





	two rabbits run side by side

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Visardist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Visardist/gifts).



No matter what the cost, Mulan has always done her duty to her family to the best of her ability.

When she goes to recite her notes, a breath in her lungs catches as she fears being so unattractive not even a seventh son will marry her, leaving her family and ancestors to die unworshipped and alone after she does and the ink changes. Suddenly, within her skin, colours she could not afford for such simple notes swirling until she makes some sort of noise that alerts the matchmaker who looks over in awe, and then glee, as she gracefully bows before the will of heaven, as the ink- no, soulmark -continues to shift and, strangely, start to burn.

When it settles, sun scorching through the window in the punishing late afternoon of summer, the matchmaker with great delicacy folds back her sleeves in their entirety, indecent if not for the great importance that recording this mark- even after a _shichen_ [1], Mulan still cannot think as it of ‘her mark’, let alone a still distant ‘our mark’, and squares her shoulders the way her father does when his knee pains him particularity but he cannot put off his full day of appointments to lie in bed, and tells herself as a daughter of the Hua she must endure. That endurance is not enough to stop her from fearing as she goes to stand vigil in thanks to her ancestors, as she now must do until the news of her soulmate returns. 

Mulan is afraid, from the way the matchmaker froze for a breath when the mark in whole was revealed. Not a snake, or a qilin[2], but a dragon. A dragon swooping through clouds, triumphant, blood on its claws. There is no soulmate of the emperor, no empress. There are many princes, many princesses. A soulmark with a dragon is a terrible sign that she may be married to one of the imperial clan, an honor but forever watched as a sign of good fortune and an elevation of status to whoever she is bound to, married as one soul in one ceremony to a nobleman for a princess, and possibly displacing some poor wife in the case of a prince. And the emperor had great-grandchildren. What a grim fate would it be, to be the mother of the world. The waiting for word from the capital- because surely she had been the second to get the mark, the one who must join her soulmate’s house- has been torturous. The mark burns harsher for a moment, as if in agreement. Mulan breathes in the scent of more expensive incense than would be burning in here normally- gifts from townspeople who had heard of the mark and hoped for good fortune through aiding her journey to her other half, as so the tales go. There is nothing for her to do but wait, and say her goodbyes to her ancestors now, before bowing before them for the last time.

The procession comes, laden with gifts and thanks. The Hua kneel to accept the emperor’s edict, as he congratulates them for the blessing laid upon their clan, giving land and prestige to her parents and bridal gifts for her as he adds to her dowry, as her intended (not an imperial scion thank goodness) was a distant cousin of his and thus he was more than pleased to act as formal witness to the marriage of Mulan, daughter of the Hua clan, and Shang, son of the Li clan in the eyes of the earth as they were already joined in the eyes of heaven, entreating Mulan to journey in state to the capital with her dowry and wealth, as her husband eagerly awaited her at the shrine of his ancestors. Mulan bows and accepts, ahead of her father despite her lack of experience in this protocol compared to him. She is not ready to be primped and preened and stared at, but at least it is no prince. He will have to stand vigil longer than her, small recompense for her clan dying out, despite the lands and wealth the emperor has sent to lessen the blow.

The procession is wonderful and luxurious as noble sons and daughters curiously circle outside her closed carriage and curtained palanquin, the few servants sent from the palace frantically updating her in protocol and her duties now she is a marked wife as opposed to a normally married in one- in this at least her being the daughter of a general, if one fallen on harder times due to a lack of sons makes the match somewhat equal, as her husband, already marked as hers if not yet in ritual, is also the son of a general. A general who is the son of a marquis, even if a second house long split, and one who married a prince’s granddaughter, so the situation between the two houses is like heaven and earth in reality even if on paper it seems ideal. Nevertheless in the eyes of the diviners and the nobles, the palace ladies all reassure her, this is a good omen indeed, to bless the country’s military so. There is even talk of an imperial betrothal for their children, although one of the ladies draws her aside during an evening and informs her that sometimes soulmates are too similar to be able to procreate, and in this her duty as a wife is not neglected if nothing comes of the marriage, and she was sure to have her choice of children by concubines to adopt if so. Every day they draw closer to the capital, yet the burning of her mark never fades or grows, as though proximity to her husband does nothing.

She does not see her husband, she feels the grasp of her hands in his and his strength as he lifts her, veils and train and all, onto his back as they board the even more ornate palanquin together, the completed soul returning home to the Estate of General Li for the first time, as what seems like all of China cheers and shouts auspicious couplets at them. There is no wife or concubine of her husband who must prostrate themselves before him, and being ceremonially referred to as ‘son’ as her husband is referred to as ‘daughter’ by General and Madam Li are nothing more than a few murmurs in a storm. They go together, her husband leading her, and bow three times- to each other, in the direction of the Li Family Shrine, and in the direction of the Hua Family Shrine. While they bow to the degree of the emperor as he blesses their marriage, it is only the first three needed for a marked couple to be considered married. Mulan is led by servants calling her ‘Young Madam Li’ to the bridal chamber, where she waits what seems an eternity before the relatives burst into the bridal chamber as they urge her husband- Young Master Li- along. There is a burst of good natured teasing and ribald jokes, and then good natured teasing about the colours the ribald jokes had turned her husband- at least they have that much in common as Mulan is sure under the veil she also turned similar shades- until at last the eldest female calls out they are all looking away, prompting Mulan to reveal herself to her other half. Mulan clenches the edge of her veil, knowing that once she does this she is married no matter what- only the bride can draw back her own veil, after all, become Hua _shi_ and Young Madam Li from Mulan the eldest Hua daughter. But, after all, Mulan reminds herself, this is a duty from the ancestors, and thus cannot be the initial death of the family it seems, and thus she must do her best to accept it. Thus, Hua _shi_ [3] throws back her veil in one swift movement, meeting the eyes of her husband Li Shang without hesitation or fear, as she speaks the formal words that accepts him as her husband. The room around them explodes in joy, and distant relatives and a few imperial clanswomen, judging by their headdresses, loudly coo over the beauty and valiant appearance of Young Madam Li, as befits the only daughter of General Hua. Hua _shi_ keeps her eyes on her husband. After all, the most vital part of her life, getting to know the other half of her soul, starts now.

Despite the mutual enjoyment of the night after the unveiling, they are quiet and awkward with each other the day after, presenting the handkerchief and being fussed over by the General and Madam Li, they are told to go and acquaint themselves, awkwardly orbiting around each other until they play a polite game of weiqi, in which Hua _shi_ absolutely thrashes her husband, to his consternation and then his delight. Despite the next few days being awkward, they slowly bond over the game, Hua _shi_ telling tales of turning games around that seemed impossible to win between elderly village residents against Shang’s recommended treatise on the use of weiqi strategy as military tactics. He lends her book about weiqi, and then about military strategy, and they discuss them.

Mulan always does her duty to her family, no matter the cost. Hua _shi_ , however, thinks that the cost of this duty may turn out to be rather enjoyable. After all, there is already a child on the way. Two sons could mean that the Hua are born anew. Generals travelling back from her wedding celebration observed a Hun incursion through an otherwise abandoned mountain pass, and raised nearby border guards to defend and repel, certain in the fact that the capital was well-guarded from the amount of dignitaries still awaiting the birth of the soul-marked's first child- an even happier omen.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> 11 a unit of time used in China that is equivalent to two hours [return to text]  
> 22 a qilin is a mythological Chinese being that is said to herald the arrival of a sage or good ruler[return to text]  
> 33 氏 (Shi): A married woman was referred to by her birth clan name and then 'shi' which meant something similar to 'clanswoman' and was the main way in which women's names were recorded during married life. [return to text]


End file.
